Support for measures to allow children to amend gender

Support for measures to allow children to amend gender on
their birth certificates

Parents of transgender children
have joined other groups in the rainbow community in
welcoming today’s announced changes to the process for
amending gender markers on birth certificates.

“These
changes are a critical step in enabling parents to support
their children to live happy, safe and productive lives in
their affirmed gender,” said Sharyn Forsyth.

Ms Forsyth
was speaking on behalf of the organisation NZ Parents and
Caregivers of Transgender and Gender Diverse Children, a
group representing over 230 families, who joined other
people and organisations in releasing a joint statement
today outlining the benefits of updating the Births, Deaths,
Marriages and Relationships Registration Act (BDMRRA)
1995.

Proposals announced today join a number of other
countries in introducing a self-declaration approach to
enable the updating of gender markers on New Zealand birth
certificates. The proposals allow for children and young
people under the age of 18 to complete the self declaration
process with support from their guardians and a health
professional. Those under the age of 16 would be required
to confirm this change when they turn 18.

“Currently,
changing a gender marker for a young person under the age of
18 requires an intrusive process overseen by the Family
Court. The Court is required to specify medical treatment
for the young person. The process is costly and
intimidating for families and presents a barrier to doing
what current psychological best practice tells us to do for
our transgender young ones - supporting them to live normal
lives”, said Ms Forsyth.

“Some of our children have
been living in their affirmed identity since a very young
age”, Ms Forsyth added. “In society, they have often
always been known as a gender that differs from that noted
on their birth certificate. Given birth certificates are a
generally accepted form of identity, being able to amend the
gender marker to match their lived identity protects them
from being ‘outed’ as transgender. Research tells us
that supporting our children in their affirmed gender leads
to the best outcomes for their mental health, in a context
where transgender children are at increased risk of suicide
and self harm due to lack of societal acceptance. We
applaud the select committee for listening to our concerns
and for helping us keep our vulnerable children
safe.”

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